WWF's Living Planet Report says world is heading for ecological credit crunch

The world is heading for an ecological credit crunch as human demands on the world's natural capital reach nearly a third more than earth can sustain, says a new report.

The Fiji Times quotes the latest edition of the WWF's Living Planet Report as saying global natural wealth and diversity continues to decline with more and more countries slipping into a state of permanent or seasonal water stress.

The organisation's Director-General, James Leape, says the world is currently struggling with the consequences of over-valuing its financial assets.

But he says, a more fundamental crisis looms ahead - an ecological credit crunch caused by under-valuing the environmental assets that are the basis of all life and prosperity.

The Living Planet Index shows a nearly 30 per cent decline since 1970 in nearly 5000 measured populations of 1,686 species.